Le Champa Del Mar – Keep the Cava Coming
Let me start from a thought, which is not original at all – it is great to have friends (huh, wow, who would’ve even thought, right? :)). My dear friend Kfir, was taking an amazing care of me in Israel, ensuring the culinary experiences. After the great time at Norma Jean, he brought me into another one of his favorite places – Le Champa Del Mar, cava bar.
The place is more or a less a hole in a wall – you have to know where you are going in order to get there. Once inside, you will find a bar and a few tables – and lots of delicious foods in the perfect bar format – tapas. In the best traditions of the Spanish cuisine, there are lots of great choices, all in the tapas, or “small snacks” format – cheese and olives, octopus, chorizo, Serrano ham and so on and so on, all watered down with variety of Cava – a sparkling wine from Spain. 
Cava is the only wine served at Le Champa Del Mar, hence the name “Cava Bar”. There is about a dozen of varieties, starting from simple Brut and going into Reserve Cavas. The great thing about Cava in general is that while the bubbles a slightly bigger than in the classic champagnes, it typically has more life in the glass compare to the equal level of champagnes ( and a lot cheaper!). We had a Brut Nature Classic and Brut Rose Classic, coming from Vallformosa winery in Spain. While Brut Rose tasted somewhat flat, Brut Nature had a great balance of acidity and yeasty fresh bread flavours, perfectly complementing “full-bodied” tapas (in case anyone is interested in my rating, I would put Drinkability at 7). I guess the only issue was the fact that all those Cavas where way easy to drink, and therefore disappearing very quickly… But we managed to overcome this challenge quite successfully.
And to give you better idea about Le Champa Del Mar, here are few more pictures:
Tapas Selection at Le Champa Del Mar
Cava is popular at Le Champa Del mar
Smoked duck breast – very delicious!
Just to conclude – another great place for food and drink – find it and enjoy!
Daily Glass: Teperberg Malbec 2007 and Rioja Faustino 2008
First, a little confession – blogging daily is more challenging than I thought – and not even because I don’t what to write – no, simply because that there is not enough time in a day. Therefore, this blog post covers the wines I had a few days ago, while in Israel. And going forward, I will do what I can, so Daily Glass might not be all so daily. And secondly, if you are wondering what was the logic of tasting Malbec and Rioja together, the answer is very simple – there was none. Both wines happened to be at the table and here we go – two for one in this Daily Glass post.
Rioja Faustino VII 2008, Spain
I have to admit – Rioja wines are one of my favorites. Typically Rioja wines balance fresh fruit, smooth tannins and acidity, all of it paired with great ageing potential (especially in a good year). Faustino is one of the widely available Rioja wines, however looking at the Wine Spectator ratings throughout the year (I don’t have much experience with this particular brand), overall it should be classified as rather average. This was a first time I tried 2008 Rioja, so I don’t have a frame of reference yet (I do now, of course, after tasting this wine 🙂 ).
Talking about this particular Faustino VII Rioja 2008, it had a good amount of fruit, paired with good acidity. As this is young wine, tannins kicked in a bit later, but at a very powerful level, keeping the mouth plucked for a few minutes. It will be interesting to come back to this wine in a few years to see where it will evolve. Overall, it was lacking the “umph”, while still being quite drinkable. Therefore the rating is…
Drinkability: 7-
Teperberg Terra Malbec 2007, Israel
As of last 4-5 years, Israel is is very confidently taking its place in the wine world. Still not known all that much to the general wine buying public, outside of the kosher wines, of course, it is becoming quite well known among wine lovers, and prices of Israeli wines reflect it quite well.
Nevertheless, seeing Israeli Malbec was somewhat of a surprise. Until now, most of the Israeli reds I tried were made of of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah, of course in various proportions. But when it comes to Malbec, the first place which comes to mind is Argentina, despite the fact that Malbec originated in Cahors region in France (known there under a name of “cot”). Argentinean Malbecs are well known as good and very enjoyable wines – and so of course I was really curious to see how Israeli Malbec will fair.
To my surprise (as I have to admit), Teperberg Malbec exceeeded my expectations. Very bright, with great fresh fruit on the palate, raspberries and blackberries and very balanced tannins – in a blind tasting I’m sure I would put it more as California Syrah than Malbec (never mind even a glimpse of an idea that it can be Israeli wine). I was looking for a possible fault, and outside of a bit of an sharp edge in the finish, which should probably be cured with another 2-3 years of aging), there was nothing to complain about. Therefore, this wine deserves a good grade:
Drinkability: 7+
If you are lucky enough to find this Teperberg Malbec, especially in US, do it – and you will not be disappointed.
Norma Jean – Best Place for Scotch and Food in Israel (and Beer too!)
Let’s set things straight – this post will be more of a photo report. The words fall short to describe an amazing experience at Norma Jean, Bistro/Bar in Tel-Aviv. The best place to sit is in the bar, as stuff is extremely friendly and knowledgeable. You can start with the beer, which comes form all over the world, and needless to say, each served in its own proper glass. While you enjoy your first beer and glass and waiting for the food, your eye can rest on the walls full of scotch:
Among many bars, I’ve seen those where you will pay $500 for a shot, and but I never saw the one with such a selection of really great scotches which you can actually afford!
And then comes food – all fresh, succulent and great tasting:
Bread with Feta Cheese
calamari
and sausages
Of course the next step is the scotch. Based on the friendly recommendation, we couple of new scotches which we never had before. First one was coming form Speyside, a belnd of three different single malts, called Monkey Shoulder in the honor of those who developed a “monkey shoulder” condition throwing peat with the shovel, while making a great scotch for the rest of us:
Monkey Shoulder – very smooth and delicate, with the hint of smoke at the end
The next one was Laphroaig Triple Wood, matured in the 3 different kinds of wood barrels, as you can see on the label:
The smoke flavor and bite on this one were immense, like breathing the air coming from the smoker (or may be just chewing on the cigar :)). Too strong by itself, addition of 3 drops of water made a miracle – the scotch opened up beautifully, with big flavor profile and lots of depth.
And then… yep, a special dessert for the scotch lovers! Tartufo, made out of the best Belgian chocolate with addition of pepper and scotch:
Great way to finish the evening of great tasting food and drinks.
I know that the picture worth a thousand words, and this is why you can see a lot of pictures. However, one should really experience the taste, this is where picture fails short – and this is why, if you even the smallest opportunity – head to Norma Jean in Tel-Aviv, you will not be disappointed.
Cheers!
Daily Glass: 2008 Block 2 Syrah by B2 Cellars
Just to finish the story on 2007 Cameron Hughes Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 140 – I did try that wine over the next two days, with expectation that as the wine will age in the open bottle (of course the bottle was not standing open, the air was removed using one of my favorite accessories, Vacu Vin Pump. Unfortunately, aging process didn’t help the wine to become balanced – alcohol, tannins and fruits all were standing on their own, refusing to meld. Therefore, the 7- is the final word on that wine. And now, let’s talk about totally different wine experience.
2008 Block 2 Syrah by B2 Cellars, Horse Heaven Hills, Washington
Syrah wines from Washington have almost cult status for me. They are usually quire rare in the stores in new Jersey and Connecticut, where I usually buy the wines, they are typically are somewhat on a pricey side, at the same time they usually taste great. I got this one as I was intrigued by the description in the Stew Leonard’s wine store in New Jersey, which said that it was an amazing find and the wine which typically cost $70 is offered at $19.99. So I decided to give a try. And I’m glad to report I was very happy I did! After my expectations were set, I also decided 
to use an appropriate Syrah glass, which you can see in the picture. The wine was great from the get go. It opened up with a beautiful nose of white pepper, leather and tobacco ( all characteristics of the good Syrah wines). On the palate, the wine was as beautiful, with all the same aromas complemented by earthiness, acidity and soft round tannins (needed some time to breathe first), very balanced. This wine is perfectly drinkable now, and will improve of the next 5-10 years ( or may be more – I still keep experimenting with my level of success in prediction of age-worthiness of the wines – but I would love to set this experiment up and report back in 5 and then in 10 years :)). All in all, Block 2 Syrah happened to live up to the store description and my expectations, which doesn’t happen all that often. And now, the verdict:
Drinkability: 8
Get a case for yourself and enjoy!
Daily Glass: 2007 Cameron Hughes Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 140, Chalk Hill, Sonoma County
An article in Wall Street Journal by Lettie Teague did put Cameron Hughes and his wines on the wine map for me. I always valued a good deal when buying wine, and Cameron Hughes held a promise to deliver very good QPR (Quality Price Ratio). I didn’t want to order direct, as shipping cost was quite steep, but then the Cameron Hughes wines started to appear in the places like WTSO, and afterward simply in the stores. When I saw Chalk Hill Cabernet Sauvignon in the local Stew Leonard’s wines, I couldn’t resist anymore.
After reading tasting notes in the Weekly Wine Journal, I also decided to use the device called versovino to accelerate “aging” process, or in other words, to help the wine to open up faster. With this – here are my tasting notes.
2007 Cameron Hughes Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 140, Chalk Hill, Sonoma County
Even with the versovino’s help and after a 10-15 minutes in the glass, the first reaction was an alcohol bomb. It was after the first reaction that I checked alcohol content – 14.9% ( I’m sure more in reality). Next, lots of jammy fruit came in, with all sorts of super-ripe berries in the mix, all smothered with very aggressive tannins, covering the whole front of the mouth. Bright acidity was showing quite well too. Interestingly enough, after about 3 hours in the open bottle, the wine became very tight and unexpressive… I would have to attribute this to the powerful wine at very young age, which will hopefully become better behaved on the second day ( report to follow). Until then the rating is…
Drinkability: 7-
Daily Glass – Chappellet Mountain Cuvee Napa Valley 2007
As this is the first post of this kind, a little explanation – as I usually have a glass of wine every nigh
t, Daily Glass will be the place to share my thoughts about the wine I was drinking. For what it worth, it is only my opinion, so it is only relevant to you if your palate and taste in wine are similar to mine. Anyway, here we go…
Chappellet Mountain Cuvee Napa Valley 2007
2007 vintage was great in Napa Valley ( rated 94-97 WS), so I guess this wine is too young to be judged. A mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Tightly woven with only a bit of fruit showing, and tannins being not too pronounced but tremendously lingering. This was not a bad wine – but at the same time, this was not a great wine either, therefore, until I try another bottle in 3-4 years…
Drinkability: 7-
Again, another explanation: Drinkability is my way to rate the wine. Wines are rated on the scale from 1-10, with + or – modifiers when uncertain. 10 means the most amazing ever, and 1 would mean “I would rather drink vinegar”. Throughout all the years, the lowest rating ever was 4, and I’m still waiting for the perfect 10 (9 being the highest ever so far).
Wine Century Club – Journey continues
And I’m doing this again… A few years ago, I got hooked on the interesting challenge – to try 100 different grapes and become a member of The Wine Century Club. This was a relatively simple task, as I already had quite a few glasses behind me 🙂 Then in the spring of 2009, I learned that there is a next membership level, “doppel”, which requires (I’m sure you guessed it) one to try 200 grapes. This was more challenging and it did require quite a bit of focus, especially trying to do this on the budget – this is where various wine tastings in the stores and at the events were of a big help. Eventually, I reached my destination, and just when I decided that it was time to rest on laurels, I learned of a new challenge! The new level, called “treble” is now the new goal. If reaching 200 was not easy, 300 is much less of an easy target.
I’m glad to reach today grape number 240 – this grape is called Uva di Troia, and I had it in a bottle of nice Italian red wine called Rosso Giancarlo Ceci, 2007, from Castel Del Monte DOC. The wine was soft, simple and heart-warming, with a great amount of black cherries on the palate and nice balancing acidity.
Well, 240 are in, and 60 more to go. When you go somewhere, it is greatly helps to have a map and see how you can get from point A to point B. Trouble is – in this “treble journey”, only half of the map is visible, and another half is under a dense fog. I definitely know about the next 7 grapes I will try ( simply because the wines are already in the cellar), and I know about 30 other grapes which somehow should be possible to find. Which leaves me 23 short…
But – long live challenge! Let’s find the way to treble – and I will keep you posted on this journey. Until the next time – cheers!
The Beginning…
So finally this blog begins… After contemplating for almost two years (with no good reason for the delay), it is the first post. It is almost midnight here ( is there a rule that all blogs are written around midnight?), but final resolve is in, so no matter what, up to the risk of being pointless, it should go out tonight, and it will.
Many times I had a thought – what is so special about wine? Is it worth the time, and effort, and moreover, the expense associated with it? To me, one of the great things about wine is a mystery. Considering the same vintage and the same bottling, no two bottles of wine will taste the same. When you open a bottle, you really don’t know what to expect – outside of a possibility of the wine being spoiled, as wine is a living thing even after it goes into the bottle, there is always room for a surprise. And the same familiar producer might have a good year, and might have a bad year, so if you loved 2005, you can’t blindly assume that 2006 will be equally great. Taste of wine also will depend on your mood, on time of day, on the food you had before or with the wine, the friends you share it with and many other factors. That is why I see a mystery in every bottle – and this gives us an ability to enjoy solving the mystery in a simple way, every day when we want to.
Well, to the mystery in our lives – and a pleasure of solving it!
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